A new perspective, and one that's been requested a few times.

Happy reading =)

"The most basic human desire is to feel like you belong. Fitting in is important." – Simon Sinek

"Derek! Emily!" JJ calls out, waving them over.

Ah, so I'm finally going to get to meet the much talked about Emily Prentiss. The stories about her from the team have made it abundantly clear that this woman had made an impact during her time here. They all speak so highly of her. Of course that had led to a little bit of worry on my end… It's never easy being the new kid at school, let alone one that is replacing a much beloved friend.

And I'd also heard the whisperings in the hallways about her "death" and subsequent reappearance, and all the rumours attempting to explain the reason why such a chain of events took place. They ranged from completely ridiculous to maybe a little bit plausible, but given that I hadn't met her and the team wasn't spilling any secrets, there was no way for me to know exactly what had happened. Still, it made trying to fill this woman's shoes a difficult task, even if the team had been welcoming and accommodating.

"Hey, Blondie," Morgan says with grin as he reaches the table, Emily at his side. "Where's Will tonight?"

"He's home with Henry. Poor little guy has a cold."

"Oh no," Emily says with a frown of sympathy. "Another one?"

"I know, I swear he has no immune system at all."

"Actually, if he didn't have-"

"REID!" JJ, Morgan, and Emily all say at once.

He grins sheepishly in response. "Sorry."

Everyone shares a chuckle at the young genius' expense, though I'm pleased when I notice he grins along with the rest of us. It's just playful teasing.

"Oh, we haven't met yet," Emily says with a warm smile. "I'm Emily," she finishes, holding out her hand.

I take her hand and give it a firm shake. "Alex Blake. Nice to finally meet you. I've heard so many wonderful things about you."

"Nothing incriminating, I hope?" she quips with a quick look to Morgan.

I let out a light laugh. "Nothing of the sort. Only wonderful stories. Although Garcia here was just trying to tell me about some man named Viper?"

"Oh god," Emily says with a cringe. "I'd almost forgotten about him. He took the concept of creepy to a whole new level."

"How so?" I ask, tilting my head and smiling. "Garcia didn't get very far in her explanation before she broke down into a fit of laughter."

"He was this pick up artist that taught classes-"

"They have those?" I interrupt.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Well that explains a lot of the men I met before I got married."

She chuckles along with the rest of the group. "Yeah, tell me about it. There are so precious few good ones left."

"That's right," Morgan says with a cocky grin. "Be glad you snagged one of them."

"Who says you're one of them?" Emily retorts with a smirk.

"Well if your exclamations last night were any indication…" he trails off with a smirk of his own.

Emily's face reddens immediately and she glares at him. JJ and Garcia's mouths drop open at his words and then they immediately turn to face each other with a knowing grin.

"This is why I never go out with you people," Rossi says, breaking the silence that had taken hold.

"I'm not nearly drunk enough for this to be happening," Emily mutters.

Morgan swings an arm up and around her, but she swats it away and shoots him another unimpressed glare. She turns and sits down in the seat next to me, leaving Morgan to take one of the few seats open across the table.

"So…Viper," I prompt her, sensing she needed a way back into the conversation.

"Right," she says, focusing her attention back onto me. "He was this total…" she trails off, apparently searching for the appropriate descriptor.

"Skeezeball?" Garcia suggests.

"Yeah, that's about right," Emily agrees. "So he essentially was teaching these guys 'his craft', and given that the unsub had basically used his exact routine, we needed to press him for details, but there was no way he was gonna just tell one of the guys."

"We had to give him someone he was already attracted to, to get under his skin a little bit," Reid added with a small smile.

"So they decided they were going to send me and Jordan – that was JJ's temporary replacement at the time – under to try and get some info outta him. I had to waste a perfectly good dress on that sleazeball," she laments.

"Skeezeball," Garcia corrects. "And honey, it wasn't wasted. You were smokin' in that outfit."

"Damn right you were," Morgan interjects.

"You were ogling me?" Emily says, turning to face Morgan.

"No, I wasn't ogling you. I was appreciating the beauty in front of me. And trust me, it was a sight."

"You were my partner!"

"And…?"

"And you weren't supposed to be staring at my ass, you were supposed to be making sure I was okay with going in to talk to that sleazeball."

"Skeezeball," Garcia corrects again.

"I wasn't staring at your ass," he defends.

"It's true, he wasn't," Reid explains. "He was staring at your legs. And, um, certain, um, other areas," he finishes as he turns beet red.

"Pretty boy, you are not helping," Morgan says, turning to face the young genius and shooting him a look.

"So you and Jordan went and talked to him?" I say, trying to get the conversation back on track, for Emily's sake. I'm pretty sure if it continued any further she was going to turn red permanently.

"Yeah, and we had to flirt with that..."

"Skeezeball," Garcia supplies with a grin.

"Skeezeball," Emily repeats with a nod. "And trust me when I say his flirting was not by any means desired."

"Did you get what you needed from him?" I ask.

"We did," she says with a nod. "But not quickly enough."

"You didn't catch the unsub?"

"Oh, we did. But I would've preferred not to have to flirt with Viper before we did."

"But you left out the best part of the story!" Garcia whines.

"I did?"

"Oh yeah. Right at the end as they were leaving, Jordan and our Emster here dressed Viper down so badly he tucked his tail between his legs and high-tailed it outta there."

"Oh, I wish I could've seen that."

"You can," Garcia says brightly. "I have it saved somewhere on my computer. Although there's no audio."

"Garcia!" JJ says in shock. "Why didn't' you tell me this before?! I have to see this now!"

"Monday, my pet, 9am in my office and I'll show you the goods. Alex, you're welcome to attend. But I'm going to the loo."

"Oh, I'll join you, I think," JJ chimes in.

"And I need a refill," Rossi says.

Morgan stands to join him. "And I need a drink. Pretty boy, you in?"

"Sure," Reid agrees.

"You better get me an expensive drink, Derek," Emily warns, pointing a finger menacingly.

He just nods in response and walks away rather quickly. And just like that it was just the two of us.

"So I hear you teach at Georgetown?" Emily says, turning her attention back to me.

"Yes, I teach linguistics over there."

"I did my Masters at Georgetown," she says, a fond expression on her face.

"Really?"

"Yeah, a Masters of Arts in Security Studies."

"Did you have a particular area of focus?"

"Intelligence."

"I would have thought Counterintelligence would have scooped you up with that degree."

She just shrugs.

"Did you go on to do a PhD as well?"

"I wanted to. But, I got recruited into law enforcement before I accepted my offer."

"Probably for the better," Morgan says with a grin as he slides into the seat next to her and places her drink in front of her. "You're an adrenaline junkie. No way you last more than a few months without any action."

"You make it sound like I can't function without it."

"You find other ways of getting your blood up now that you aren't in the field as often," he says with a wink.

"Keep this up and I'll find other ways," she warns, and I can't help but laugh at his expression. He knows she's deadly serious.

"Right. Um, well, I think you would've done amazing at, uh, where was it you were gonna do your PhD?"

"Stanford, babe."

"Stanford?!"

"Not just a pretty face," she quips.

"Definitely not," JJ says. "She's also got one hell of a right hook."

"And a gorgeous bod!" Garcia adds. "What?" she adds, when she receives a few looks. "It's true."

"So you two," I say, gesturing to the two bantering former partners. "How long have you been together?"

"Couple of months," Morgan answers with a smile, wrapping an arm around Emily now that she's a little less angry with him. She allows him to squeeze her into his side, instead focusing on downing the last of her whiskey.

"Derek! Emily! Come on, we're dancing!" Garcia says happily as she drags Reid toward the dance floor.

"She's not going to let me just sit here, is she?" Emily asks me with a sigh.

"Probably not," I answer with a shake of my head.

"Come on, Alex! You too!"

"Sorry, Penelope," I apologize. "I have to get going. I have a class to teach tomorrow at 8."

"Boo! This is the first Friday we've had off in weeks!"

"I know, I'm sorry. Next time?"

"I'm holding you to that."

"I never doubted that you would."

"Well, I guess this is bye then," Garcia says sadly.

"See you Monday," JJ says with a smile. "And don't worry about this one. We'll get a few drinks into Reid and she'll have someone new to focus on."

"Bye, Derek," I say before waving to Rossi who's seated at the bar nursing an expensive glass of scotch, and to Reid who's clearly uncomfortable with the kind of dancing Garcia is trying to coax him into partaking in.

"See ya later, Blake," Derek returns.

"It was nice meeting you," Emily says politely.

"Likewise. I'm sure I'll be seeing you soon."

"If Garcia has any say, then definitely," she says with a grin. "Have a good weekend!"

"You too," I say with a smile and then grab my purse and head toward the exit.

While it had been fun, and I'd enjoyed getting to see everyone in a non-professional setting, and I'd gotten a chance to meet Emily, the best part of the evening was the feeling of acceptance. They'd all been so welcoming, and helpful during my transition into the BAU, but tonight I finally felt like I'd been let into their inner circle. Derek had been relaxed enough to show his affection for Emily, despite that I was there, and for a man that doesn't trust easily – that much I'd gleaned from being around him this past little while – that was significant. In a way, he'd let me into a part of his private life, and I think that speaks volumes about how he feels about me as a part of the team, and as a part of the family.

And Emily had confirmed every one of the wonderful things I'd heard about her. She was kind, compassionate, funny, and seemed like a genuine person. And she seemed to accept me as a part of the team she'd left, and as a part of the family she was still very much a part of.

So...how'd I do with Blake? Did you chuckle at Morgan shamelessly embarrassing Prentiss? Or as you tried to picture exactly what kind of dancing Garcia was trying to coax Reid into partaking in? Leave a few words and let me know!